It is astonishing and bit concerning how many people in audiences do not notice when characters are obviously lying, avoiding answers because they don't wan to talk about it not because they don't know it. OR characters straight up even manipulating others and playing obviously for sympathy. But yet so many don't understand it, don't expect it and then either defend the manipulators or call characters stupid or the whole writing bad.
With the many darker and more toxic (<3) series recently I see that way too often, that people simply do not think of the possibility that a character can lie to other characters / the audience and that this is NOT a plot hole or bad writing 🙄
srsly when did it happen that every time someone doesn't get a story / character immediately, instead of rewatching some bits and thinking bit more about it, that it's stamped as bad writing and dropped because it doesn't make sense. In most cases I witness it really is people simply not picking up the hints or not waiting for the reveal of more information. Or not paying attention to the body language or facial expressions (which are in fiction even more overacted by actors and highlighted by cameras than what people would see in RL btw)
But I don't even mean unreliable narrator stories, that are indeed bit harder to crack. But really very obvious lying or withholding informations by a character.
So many people are so obsessed with pointing out flaws in things or people that they don't even spend a second to think that maybe it is supposed to be that way and you are supposed to fill the gaps with theories and question what is happening.
